Refrigerating ice-chamber.



uo..s34,79|. Patented out. m, |899.

. W. BACHNER.

REFBIGEBATING ICE CHAMBER.

(Application led Aug. 18, 1898.) (No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet L CMQ e n nnl 1n: ummm Pcrsns co.. wo'vmuwm wAsmNo'roN. u4 c.

Patented uct. lo, |399.

No. 634,79l.

w. BACHN'ER. REFRGERATNG ICE CHAMBER..

(Applicstion filed Aug'. 16, 1898.)

" 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILHELM BACHNER, OF STUTTGART, GERMANY.

REFRIG ERATING 'ICEFC'HAM BER.

p SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 634,791, dated October 10, 1899.

Application iiled August 16, 1898. Serial No. 688,670. (No model.)

To @ZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILHELM BAGHNER, a citizen of the Empire of Germany, residing at Stuttgart, in the Kingdom of Wrtemberg,

Germany, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Refrigerators; andI do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear,

and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use' the same.

The ice-chests or refrigerating-chambers hitherto employed have the drawbacks in many instances that owing to the want of a circulation of air Wateris deposited'on the food products intended to be preserved, which is particularly deleterious for meat, (espe-Y cially cooked meat,) sausage, butter, and the like, and considerably shortens the duration Furthermore, theicewater from the chest and at the same timepreventing the admission of the outer air.

All these drawbacks are entirely removed by my improved ice-chest, which has been tested for a long time.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure l is a vertical longitudinal sectional view of my improved refrigerator, and Fig. 2 is a hori zontal sectional view thereof on the line zo. 1 Fig. 31s a vertical transverse sectional view.

Figsr 1, 5, and 6 are vdetail views of the separate doors employed for preventing escape of cold air when the outer'or main doors of the refrigerator are opened. Fig. 7 is a-front elevation; and Fig. 8 is a similar view to Fig. 2,`

showing the position lassumed by the inner working partswhen thefouter doors are opened.

An ice-holder O, resting on supports G, is inserted in the cen-ter of the internal-chamber of the ice-chamber A and is widened above and' closed by means of a removable cover B by an iron frame b on `the under part of the latter, which frame runs all around and is of ,FL-shaped section, resting on andforming a tight joint, with a frame c of similar shape and L-shaped section on the upper part of the ice-chest. The lower part of the ice! holder C ends in a hopper-shaped extension .0', the outlet of which is provided with a iiap or valve J, which is automatically closed and opened on the doors T being opened and closed, respectively. This is effected by means of angle-pieces t, attached to the doors, on which forked pieces p are pivotally mounted, which are connected Wiih bell-cranks M by links n. The said bell-cranks M are connected with the valve J by means of cords s carried over rollers r, so that the opening or closing `'of either one of the two doors is sufficient to automatically close or open the valve J. The said extension C', at its lower part, is bent or turned rearwardly, so as to permit of the opening of the inwardly-swinging inner doo'rs T', hereinafter described. A grating H, on which the ice rests, is arranged as usual in the ice-container, so that only ice-water and no ice. can ce into the hopper C. The hopper C also forms a cold-air-storage chamber, as hereinafter more fully understood, so

that on the closing of the doors the air accu-v mulated therein descends with pressure into the cool chamber, and thereby produces an increased circulation of air therein. Open- Y ings c are provided in the upper part of the iceTholder, and in order to produce a better `circulation of the air the two shorter side V'Walls o; of the chamber are made inclined like aroof, so that the rising Warmer air is directed to the openings c in the ice-holder C, While the cold air descends in the latter and, so long as the valve .I is not closed, passes into the chest from the lower orice of the hopper C. A constant automatic circulation of air thus takes place in the direction indi cated by thearrows, which, however, at once yceases' through the closing of the valve .I on the opening of the doors,` so that the cold air remains accumulated in the hopper until the doorsare again closed.

K In order that the circulation of air-in the interior of the ice-holder shall not be im- A vessel D forl catching thewater is ary ranged against the rear wall of the refriger- ICO ator under the hopperl C', which vessel is divided into two compartments by means of a partition D and from which the ice-water is conveyed to the outside by means of a si-' phon-pipe E. The pipe E has outside an Oblique closing iiap or valve e, which is opened automatically by the water itself running away, while the partition D/ prevents the outside air penetrating into the iceholder.

In order to cause the warmer air to be eX- pelled from the ice-holder on the closing of the doors, which causes a compression of the air in the said holder, while retaining the cold air in the latter, the following arrangement is adopted: The cover B of the container has an opening on which a short tube b is mounted, the opening of which is closed by an india-rubber ball or valve 7s. The latter is covered by a cap b2, having small openings in the top, which cap limits the movement of the ball or valve 7o, but allows air to escape from the ice-chest on the opening of the said valve k. Vhen the doors T are closed, the air in the holder is compressed, and the warmer air at the top escapes through a momentary lifting of the ball or valve 7a, Fig. l. that they do not extend to the bottom of the inner chamber, but a considerable distance intervenes between the lower edge of the doors and the floor. Further, on the inner side of the doors and within the chamber at the bottom separate doors T', Figs. 4, 5, and 6, are arranged, which open inwardly. By so arrangingthe inner doors they may be thrown open and kept so permanently whenever the refrigerating-chamber is to be completely iilled'with articles or when very large bullcs are placed within such chamber, so that less difficulty will be had in removing the articles than if the said doors were allowed to remain closed. 1 In other instances the said inner doors are closed to prevent as much as possible the escape of cold air whenever the outer doors are opened. These in- `ner doors extend some distance above the lower edge of the outer doors, as shown in Fig. On the opening of the doors the cold# est air, lying at the deepest part, remains in the ice-holder, Fig. 3. 'Ihe doors T are also connected with weights W, which on the fastening-bolt of the doors being drawn back the latter open automatically, and simultaneously the valve J also automatically closes. These weights have for their object to bring the doors fully open; but when they are not required to be fully open they must always be entirely closed, so that selfevidently a considerable saving of refrigerating material is eifected.

With a very moderate consumption of ice such an excellent air-circulation is created in the refrigerating-chamber by the arrangement hercinbefore described that actually no deposit of water on the food products to be cooled takes place, the latter remaining quite The doors T are also so arrangedA 1. The combination, in a refrigerator, of a cooling-chamber provided with an outer door, and an inner door operating, when shut, to close the lower part of the opening fully covered by said outer door, whereby escape of cold air from the lower part of the coolingchamber is prevented during access to said chamber.

2. The combination, in a refrigerator,of a cooling-chamber providedwith outer doors, and inner doors operating, 'when shut, to close the lower part of the opening fully covered by said outer doors, whereby escape of cold air from the lower part of the cooling-chamber is prevented during access to said chamber.-

3. The combination, in a refrigerator, of a cooling-chamber provided with an outer door, an inner door operating, when shut, to close the lower part of the opening fully covered by said outer door, whereby escape of cold air from the lower part of the cooling-chamber is prevented during access to said chamber, an ice-holder extend-ing into the chamber, and a drip-pan beneath said holder.

4. The combination, in a refrigerator, of a cooling-chamber provided with outer doors, inner doors operating, when shut, to close the lower part of the opening fully covered by said outer doors, for the purpose described, an ice-holder supported in the top of the chamber, and extending to a point below the upper edge of the door-opening, an air-'store age chamberat the bottom of said ice-holder,

Aand means operated by the opening of the outer doors for closing said storage-chamber.

5. The combination, in a refrigerator, of a cooling-chamber provided with outer doors, inner doors operating, When shut, to close the lower part of the opening fully covered by said outer doors, an ice-holder supported in the top of the chamber, and extending to a point below the upper edge of t'hefdoor-opem ing, an air-storage chamber at the bottom of said ice-holder, and means operated by the opening of the outer doors for closing said storagechamber- 6. The combination, in a refrigerator, vof a cooling-chamber provided with outer doors, inner doors operating, when shut, to close the lower part of the opening fully covered by said outer doors for the purpose described,

an ice-holder supported in the top of the cooling-chamber, and provided in its top with a valve opening to the atmosphere, and an air-storage chamber at the lower end of the ice-holder, the same provided with a valve lfor opening and closing said storage-chamber,

Iig

said first-named valve operating to release the Warm a-ir produced in the ice-holder, by the closing of thesaid outer doors.

7. The combination, in a refrigerator, of a cooling-chamber provided Wit-h outer doors, inner doors operating, when shut, to close the iower part of the opening:r fully covered by said outer doors for the-purpose described,

an ice-holder having openings for the circulation of air from the cooling-chamber, and provided in its top .with 2L valve opening to the atmosphere, en air-storage chamber at the lower end of seid iee-ho1der,'al valve for said storage-chamber, and means for closing and opening said letter valve on the opening and I5 closing of seid outer doors.

Y In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two Witnesses.

XVILHELM BACHNER. Witnesses:

AUGUST DRAUTZ, H. WAGNER. 

